Kenya Airways Sponsiors Kenyan Sevens Team to the tune of Ksh.290 million

Kenya Airways Sponsiors Kenyan Sevens Team to the tune of Ksh.290 million

Kenya Airways has signed a huge sponsorship deal worth Ksh.290million($ 3million)for the Kenya Sevens Rugby team. The Kenyan Sevens team has a great international profile and is a regular participant of the Sevens circuit and has given the airline an international profile in terms of branding.

Reports Wolfgang H Thome blog:

18 players and four coaches and staff will under the new and much improved deal get monthly salaries paid, allowing them all to concentrate fully on team affairs and training, besides improved medical coverage and of course the all important tickets to and from major events, where the Kenyans are now a regular side playing in the 8 country / 9 match series. They are again invited to play in Japan, with other matches played in Hong Kong, the United Arab Emirates, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, the UK and the United States of America.

Brand new kits as well as bonuses for match and series wins too are part of the new deal, which will see Kenya Airways hold all the sponsorship rights for the team, which of course will wear the badge of The Pride of Africa with pride


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TAAG Angola carried 1 million Passengers in 2010

TAAG Angola carried 1 million Passengers in 2010

TAAG Angola Airlines carried 1,012,000 passengers in 2010, a figure 6.9% lower than in 2009, with 62% load factors.  50,516 passengers flew on TAAG from Angola to Brazil representing a 16.35% drop in demand while 52,848 passengers flew from Brazil to Angola on the airline during the same period. The total cargo volume carried by the airline in all routes was 56 million tonnes-km of cargo.

TAAG Angola Operates two weekly flights with Boeing 777-300ER on the Luanda - Rio de Janeiro route and three weekly flights to Sao Paulo.
Current fleet: 02 Boeing 737-2M2, 01 Boeing 737-2M2F, 04 Boeing 737-7M2 + 2 ordered 03 Boeing 777-2M2ER and 02 Boeing 777-3M2ER.

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Estonian Air begins Social media Loyalty Program

Estonian Air begins Social media Loyalty Program

Estonian Air has launched a new social loyalty programme for its customers and fans, aiming to reward customers for not only flying the airline but also for being strong advocates online. This way Estonian Air creates history in loyalty marketing, being the first airline in the world launching social loyalty programme.

Estonian Air is the first airline in the world to launch a social media loyalty programme fully-powered by social media and using the underlying Facebook platform. Estonian Air customers and fans can be rewarded for a variety of advocacy actions, like sharing their reviews of the airline on Facebook and tweeting a deal about the airline.

 This is the first time in the world where customers will be rewarded for advocacy without even having to fly the airline.


This is a bold and ground breaking move, as a heavy social media user who likes discussing airlines, I always wonder at times whether am creating any value for myself in discussing an airline and its various offers; here's an airline that understands the value of positive social media vibe in improving an airline's brand image and rewards users for enhancing its brand image. People still use social media, especially Twitter to get information about an airline and determine whether they will buy a ticket based on that information. While many of my choices in air travel this year have been determined by necessity rather than social media, constant vibe about some airlines' quality services make me wish when I could fly with those airlines. An airline's brand image is enhanced when users find positive vibe in their timeline every time they log in to Twitter. It's something that's eventually embedded in the psyche of the traveler. I wonder whether on the contrary, this promotion might lead to numerous fake reviews by social media users just to earn a few points!

Airlines are trying to find ways to make air travel more attractive and rewarding for even those who aren’t frequent flyers. The future of airline loyalty is now a pressing question given to the growth of social technologies. In this field Estonian Air is working together with SimpliFlying, the world leaders in helping airlines engage customer profitably.

“Today 88% of frequent flyers use Facebook and they are twice as active as ordinary Facebook users. Over 70% of them would like to be part of a social loyalty programme too. Estonian Air’s pioneering effort in this field will intensify a pool of advocates for engaging with the airline online. The lessons learned from this can potentially change the course of airline loyalty programmes globally,” says Shashank Nigam, CEO of SimpliFlying.

“In addition to rewarding and sharing recognition to our fans and customers, we also see it is an innovative way to bring Estonian Air and Estonia to the world map. Estonia is a small market and in order to provide good connections at reasonable price for Estonians, the airline needs to also attract connecting traffic from outside Estonia. Social Media is one of the most effective ways to market and promote brands across the borders,” said Tero Taskila, the CEO of Estonian Air.

Foursquare recently announced a growth of 3,400%, signed up its 6 millionth user, and that nearly 381.6 million people checked in worldwide – all in 2010. A study conducted by social networking site myYearbook reported that 81% of respondents said they received advice from friends and followers relating to a product purchase through a social site and 74% of those who received such advice found it to be influential in their own decisions. These are the trends Estonian Air aims to capitalize upon.


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Día de los Muertos: Mini Spiced-Corn Empanadas

Día de los Muertos: Mini Spiced-Corn Empanadas

This weekend Mr. S. and I attended a friend's birthday party that had an interesting theme- Día de los Muertos. I made several standard appetizers but wanted to make at least one appetizer that went along with the theme of the party so I decided to try my hand at some mini spiced corn empanadas from my  "In The Small Kitchen" cookbook (by Cara Eisenpress & Phoebe Lapine). They turned out to be pretty easy to make although my pastry crimping skills left a bit to be desired (next time I just might use a gyoza press so it looks a bit more polished). Anyhow, the empanadas turned out tasty and we had a fab time at the party. The guests' costumes were fantastic and the hostesses did a great job decorating the house with colorful flores de papel, altars for the deceased, sugar skulls and miniature skeletons. What a night!

Spiced Corn Filling

Ingredients

2 T unsalted butter

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 shallot, minced

One 15-ounce can corn kernels, rinsed & drained

1 t ground cumin

1 t salt

dash cayenne pepper


Instructions

1. In a medium saucepan or skillet, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Add the garlic and the shallot and cook until fragrant, being careful not to burn the garlic. 1 to 2 minutes.

2. Add the corn, cumin, salt and cayenne. Sauté gently until the corn is hot and the flavors are melded. 3 to 5 minutes.


Empanada Dough

Ingredients

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 t salt

8 T ( 1 stick) very cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch cubes

1 egg

1/3 cup very cold water

1 T white wine vinegar

1 egg, beaten


Instructions

1. Make the dough: In a large bowl, stir the flour and salt together with a fork. Add the butter cubes, and with your fingers, rub the butter into the dry ingredients. The mixture will start to look like crumbs. (Try to touch the dough as little as possible.)

2. In a small bowl, beat together the egg, cold water, and vinegar with a fork. Add this to the flour mixture, stirring until just incorporated.

3. Lightly flour your cutting board or countertop, and transfer the dough to the work surface. Knead the dough with heel of your hand until it comes together. Form it into a flat disk and cover with plastic wrap. Chill in fridge for at least 2 hours.

4. When you are ready to use the dough, roll it out on a floured surface until it is about 1/2 inch thick, and cut it into 6 sections. Roll each section until it is very thin (about 1/8-inch thick) and using a 3-inch round cutter, cut the dough into rounds.

5. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

6. Place a little less than 1 tablespoon of the filling in the middle of each pastry round and fold in half. Seal with a fork, then crimp the edges with your fingers. Arrange the empanadas on a cookie sheet. Combine the egg and 2 tablespoons water in a small bowl, and brush the empanadas with this egg wash. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until browned on top.

Happy Halloween! : Zombie Cupcakes

Happy Halloween! : Zombie Cupcakes

It's that time of the year again, when little ghosts, goblins and ghouls go gallivanting throughout the neighborhood begging for treats and adult creatures of the night head for parties to imbibe in some witches' brew and to down a few tasty eats. If you're looking for something to bring, try this Devil's Food Cupcake recipe by Martha Stewart. I made a batch this afternoon and topped it with some orange cream cheese frosting and some zombie limbs and mini-bone sprinkles (leftover from last year's cake decorating kit). Voilà! A perfect Halloween snack for both kidlets and adults. Unfortunately, our resident "Batdog" can't have any...no chocolate for doggies, no matter how cute they are.

Martha Stewart's Devil's Food Cupcakes - makes 32

Ingredients

3/4 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder

3/4 cup hot water

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 1/4 teaspoons coarse salt

1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter

2 1/4 cups sugar

4 large eggs, room temperature

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 cup sour cream, room temperature

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Whisk together cocoa and hot water until smooth. In another bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.

2. Melt butter with sugar in a saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring to combine. Remove from heat, and pour into a mixing bowl. With an electric mixer on medium-low speed, beat until mixture is cooled, 4 to 5 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Add vanilla, then cocoa mixture, and beat until combined. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture in two batches, alternating with the sour cream, and beating until just combined after each.

3. Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each three- quarters full. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until a cake tester inserted in centers comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Transfer tins to wire racks to cool 15 minutes; turn out cupcakes onto racks and let cool completely. Cupcakes can be stored overnight at room temperature, or frozen up to 2 months, in airtight containers.


Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients

2 (8 ounce) packages Philadelphia cream cheese, room temperature

1/2 cup butter, room temperature

3 cups sifted confectioners' sugar

1.5 teaspoon vanilla extract

yellow & red food coloring


Instructions

1. Using an electric mixer, mix together the cream cheese and butter until creamy. Add in the vanilla, then gradually stir in the confectioners' sugar.

2. Add food coloring to frosting until desired color shade is achieved.

3. Spread or pipe icing onto cupcake. Decorate.

Waitin' For The Great Pumpkin... : Tasty Pumpkin Seeds

Waitin' For The Great Pumpkin... : Tasty Pumpkin Seeds

Wow, readers I hope you were out this weekend enjoying the gorgeous sunny weather and all the wonderful activities Sacramento had to offer! Saturday, Mr. S. and I braved the crowds and cruised up to Camino to Apple Hill to enjoy some delicious apple cider donuts and pick up some treats but on Sunday we had the kidlets (who are at that age where they're "too cool for Apple Hill") so we planned some other fun family activities. We spent the afternoon learning about falcons and snakes at the Naturefest being held at the Effie Yeaw Nature Center. While we were there, we even met a "wild turkey" and got to make an abalone necklace to take home.

Afterwards, we came home and carved some pumpkins. They came out pretty cool, no?

Now don't go throwing away those pumpkin seeds when you're done carving, that's the best part of the pumpkin. Rinse them off thoroughly, pat them dry and set them aside---roasted pumpkin seeds are easy to make, delicious and quite nutritious!

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

Ingredients

3 cups pumpkin seeds, washed & patted dry

3 Tablespoons butter, melted

1 Tablespoon olive oil

5 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon minced garlic (you can use fresh or dehydrated, I had a little of each on hand so I used both)

1 teaspoon salt (1.5 teaspoons if you like it a little extra salty, like I do)

1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning

1/4 teaspoon cayenne

* optional : a sprinkle or two of Morton Nature's Seasons Seasoning Blend for a little extra kick.


Instructions

- Preheat oven to 275 degrees F.

- Combine all ingredients with seeds in large mixing bowl. Mix thoroughly then spread evenly on a baking sheet.

- Bake for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes.

Coconut Lime Chicken with Chiles

Coconut Lime Chicken with Chiles

After such a long break, I really never know how to begin writing a new post. Say sorry?  Tell you where I've been all this time?  Just jump right in like nothing ever happened?  Maybe I'll start by telling you that I'm working full time for the first time in years, and it's an interesting juggling act teaching preschool, getting my kids to daycare, back home, dinner on the table, clean up, bath, put kids to bed and prepping for a new day of school the next day.  Many many people have this busy schedule, I know, it just took a while for me to figure out the ropes, get my bearings and let the dust settle.  Now that I've got the new routine figured out and I'm not falling over dead tired by 8pm, I'm adding more to my plate!  My husband and I are gearing up for our first mission trip and will be going to India in late November.  We'll be working with children in the slums and have been raising money to bring milk to the children.  Not to mention my husband and I lead a church small group in our home once a week and I'm co-leader of our children's ministry at church.  My plate is FULL!

With all that going on, you can imagine I've been on the lookout for quick meals so I can actually get food on the table for my family.  I borrowed Robin Miller's cookbook Quick Fix Meals from my Dad months ago and perused it this summer, bookmarking recipes like crazy and taking note of dinner strategies.  I've been so impressed with some of the recipes I went on a cooking spree today just so I could photograph and share them with you.

This great coconut lime chicken is done in about 20 minutes and doesn't require a ton of ingredients.  Don't let the word "chiles" scare you off if you don't like spice.  It's really quite mild.


Recipe from Robin Miller: Quick Fix Meals
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Serves 4

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch cubes
3 cloves garlic, minced
1-2 tsp curry powder
1 14 oz can light or regular coconut milk
1 4 oz. can diced green chiles
Zest and juice of 1 lime
1/4 cup green onion, chopped
2 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped (optional)

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add the chicken and garlic and cook until golden brown on all sides, about 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the curry powder and cook, stirring for 1 minute, until it is fragrant. Add the coconut milk, chiles, lime juice and zest, bring to a simmer, and simmer until the chicken is just cooked through, about 5 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Remove from the heat, stir in the green onions and cilantro.  Serve over rice.

Click here for printable version of Coconut Lime Chicken with Chiles

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THE RESULTS?

The sauce on this chicken has a really great smooth and coconutty flavor with a kick of lime.  I even punched up the lime by adding a bit more juice.  While you do add curry powder, this dish is not really a curry, per se.  It just adds a subtle warm flavor.  The diced green chiles add flavor rather than heat, and it wasn't too spicy for my spice-wimpy children.  

I should tell you that this dish was met with mixed reviews.  Both myself and my kids ate this and thought it was great while my husband thought it was just okay.  He wanted it to have more curry flavor, but that's not the point of this dish.  It's NOT a curry, it's COCONUT LIME.  He also wanted it spicier.  I wouldn't have minded more spice either and think a great solution would be to saute sliced jalapeno's with the chicken....but then it wouldn't be so kid-friendly anymore.  When it's six of one and half a dozen of the other, I'll take "no complaints from my kids" on a busy weeknight for sure.

I really loved how quick and easy this was to prepare.  I brought the leftovers to work the next day and my co-worker exclaimed "WOW that smells good! Is that recipe on your blog?"  

Childhood Memories

Childhood Memories

This reminds me of my Aunt Eleanor so much!

Indian Summer : Pepperfin

Indian Summer : Pepperfin

Wow, after that jag of autumnal weather I thought for sure I'd be making roasts, soups and various comfort foods by mid-October but it looks like Mother Nature decided to throw us a curve ball and plop us into an Indian Summer. The weather in Midtown's been lingering around the comfortable high 70's/low 80's and the canopies of trees with their thick green leaves are holding strong. In fact most of the plants in my yard are still looking pretty joyous, take a look:

So going with the weather, instead of a typical October stick-to-your-ribs heavy stew I ended up making a refreshing dish of pepperfin for lunch today. It ended up being perfect-- light and quick and it tided me over until dinner time.

Viva la summer!

Pepperfin

Ingredients

4 oz fresh albacore tuna, sashimi grade

2-2.5 t. lemon juice

6 tsp regular soy sauce (not low sodium)

2/3 tsp sesame oil

dash or two of chili oil (optional)

sliced fresh  jalapeño

Instructions

1. Slice tuna into 1/8-1/2 inch pieces, against the grain.

2. Arrange on plate. Garnish with jalapeño slices.

3. Mix sauce ingredients in bowl. Spoon sauce over fish.  Serve.

* I will confess I did dump all of the sauce over the fish "Mikuni"-style after the photo was taken. :)

The Big 3-7

The Big 3-7

"The secret to staying young is to live honestly, eat slowly and lie about your age."

~ Lucile Ball

Sorry folks, I know haven't been posting any recipe attempts lately, but to be honest I haven't been trying anything new out lately. Been going with the tried and trueds as of late and doing a little bit of birthday celebrating; but I promise, I'll be back in the kitchen ASAP! This week in fact. Anyhow, yesterday was my "real" birthday and I turned the big 3-7. In honor of the big date, Mr. S. and his kidlets, booted me from la cocina and told me that THEY were cooking ME dinner for a change. How do you like them apples? :)  I showed up at 7pm and was greeted with an appetizer of juicy steak bites wrapped in bacon and for the main course- peppered tuna steaks, saffron rice and grilled asparagus and portabellos. It was delicious. The highlight of the evening was when I was presented with not one birthday dessert...but TWO! Yum! The kidlets (ages 9 & 12) had each baked me a birthday cake---a yellow cake with chocolate frosting and chocolate chip cookie cake bars. They were both delicious! Afterwards we watched a DVD of the animated kidlet movie, "Rio," which turned out to be quite adorable. If you haven't seen it, check it out...the Brazilian music will have you tapping your foot while the birds' crazy antics will have you laughing out loud. Tonight, it's off for a few drinks with a couple of friends and maybe indulging in some greasy-yummy bar food at the Hideaway. Here's to another year of tasty eats, cheers!

The Kitchen

The Kitchen

2225 Hurley Way Ste 101, Sacramento, CA 95825, (916) 568-7171
www.thekitchenrestaurant.com

“Anybody can make you enjoy the first bite of a dish, but only a real chef can make you enjoy the last.”

– Francois Minot

I knew something was up when Mr. S. copped a sly smile and told me not to plan anything for October 8th. October 8th isn't my birthday but it is the weekend before my birthday and it is the weekend that we wouldn't have the kidlets...what he was up to I wasn't exactly sure but I had my suspicions. I'm a horrible secret keeper (awful really) but I'm a great investigator...within a week, I had it figured out---Mr. S. had booked a night at the most exclusive restaurant in town--The Kitchen. To say I was excited was an understatement, I had been wanting to go there for quite awhile but at $125 a head it was pretty out of bounds for my meager budget.

What's the big fuss about this restaurant, you say? Well besides the ridiculously fab food, the major draw of The Kitchen is that they allow you access to the entire restaurant (and they only do one seating, so you never feel rushed.) In fact dinner takes over four hours, so don't make any other plans.

We got there about 7pm and were greeted with a warm smile at the door and the fragrant aroma of rosemary. From there we were given ample time to explore the extensive wine cooler, wander out to the patio garden and take a few laps through the bustling kitchen. The oenophiles had plenty of time to chat with Doug Nitchman, the charismatic in-house sommelier, and everyone got to mingle with Chef Noah Zonca and his friendly crew. At dinner time, everyone took their appointed seats and the entertainment began. Ingredients were introduced (some were even alive), flames quickly flashed in pans in various corners of the counter and everyone seemed mesmerized by the action. Mr. S. and I were lucky enough to have secured some of the best seats in the house (near the end of the counter)---we could see all of the cooking and plating inches from our faces and all of the kitchen goings on. In fact, we even got an impromptu performance of one of the cooks doing the cabbage patch in the back.

The menu for the night we dined (it changes monthly):

First Course
‘Thai Style’ Coconut Milk Soup with Local Crayfish, Walnut Flan and Cabbage Slaw

Second Course
Rabbit, Porcini Mushroom, and Vegetable Pot Pie with Tomato-Corn Butter and Aged Sherry Gastrique

Intermezzo
Sushi • Sashimi • Crudo

Third Course
Maine Lobster Bolognese and Warmed Egg Yolk with Butter Poached Black Truffle Pasta and Red Wine-Parmesan Broth

Fourth Course
Naturally Raised Veal Porterhouse with Pan Juices

Dessert Course
Valencia Orange Custard Cake with Sorbets, Caramelized Marcona Almonds and a Caramel-Orange Glaze

Everything was quite amazing (I think the only dish that didn't completely wow us was the veal porterhouse) but I have to say the third course, the lobster bolognese, was seriously mindblowing. Both Mr.S. and I were still talking about it the next day. (In hindsight, I wish I had gotten seconds of that rustic third course but I was bursting at the seams at the time.) Oh, and that wonderful almond brittle that came with the dessert---good gawd, let's not forget that!  I also loved the fact that The Kitchen will accommodate any, and I do mean any, allergies or dietary preferences. They made every one of my dishes without dairy and every single dish was absolutely delicious. I appreciated that they didn't just sub in a different dish and that I got to eat what everyone else was eating. I noticed that they also accommodated shellfish allergies and those who didn't eat veal as well on the night that we were were there...and the chef didn't grouse once while he was plating ( I know because I was sitting just a few inches from where they were plating). The other interesting thing about The Kitchen is that you can have as many extra helpings as you want. There was a couple from Australia that was there the night we were there that was making their way through 3rds and 4ths of every dish---it was crazy. Neither Mr. S. nor I could figure out where they were putting it all. But hey, good for them---I guess they were getting their money's worth!

So five delicious mouth-watering courses, an amazing intermezzo of sashimi and sushi, a white glove tea service and a goodnight hug from the chef...it was a perfect way to close out my 36th year. Although it'll probably take my entire 37th year to work all those calories off...it was worth every bite (and the company I was with was exceptional).  I can see why everyone's so enamored with The Kitchen, I am now as well. Thank you, Mr.S!

White Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting

White Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting

मराठीमध्ये वाचण्यासाठी इथे क्लिक करा

I have started liking the taste of cream cheese. I have used it in past with carrot cake and mixed indian spices to create floral taste for the icing. This time I decided to use the chocolate flavour given that i was making Red Velvet Cup Cakes which use the tinge of coco powder for chocolaty taste.


Ingredients
225gm Cream Cheese
225gm White Chocolate
1 Cup Butter
2 Cup Icing Sugar

Method

• In a bowl microwave half of the white chocolate for 1 minute.
• Add in remaining white chocolate and mix well. Microwave for 15 seconds
• Stir the chocolate well till it is smooth and completely melted. Keep aside
• In another bowl beat the cream cheese till soft and smooth.
• Add in the melted chocolate and beat again till smooth
• Add in butter and beat again
• Add in icing sugar and beat till soft, smooth and fluffy

Notes
When adding the chocolate, it should have cooled off, if not wait till it cools down. Don't pour warm chocolate in the cheese.

Red Velvet Cup Cakes

Red Velvet Cup Cakes

मराठीमध्ये वाचण्यासाठी इथे क्लिक करा

I had made these when mom dad were around but they weren't perfect especially they were little on drier side. So this time I made little bit change in quantities and they come out perfect. I frosted them with White Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting.


Ingredients
2.5 Cup Maida
1/4 Spoon Coca Powder
1/4 Spoon Baking Soda
1/4 Spoon Salt
1.5 Cup Sugar
1 Egg
1.5 Cup Oil
2 Spoon Curd
1 Spoon Liquid Red Food Color
1/4 Spoon Vinegar
1/4 Spoon Vanilla Essence

Method

• Preheat oven to 350F/175C
• Sieve Maida and Coca Powder in a bowl
• Mix in baking soda, salt and sugar in it
• In separate bowl add in egg, oil, red food color, vanilla essence and vinegar.
• In a cup add in the curd and fill it with water. Mix well with the fork and add it to the wet mixture (oil-egg mixture)
• Beat the mixture on low speed till smooth
• Add in sieved dry mixture of maida-coca powder a cup at a time and beat slowly till it accommodates in the mixture.
• Line the cupcake pan with the paper cups. Divide the mixture in 12 cups.
• Bake the cake on 350F/175C for 22 minutes

Notes
I normally turn around the cupcakes after 70% of baking time in this case around 15 minutes. It helps in even baking of the cakes.

Spice Paratha

Spice Paratha

मराठीमध्ये वाचण्यासाठी इथे क्लिक करा

I made these simple spice parathas today for dinner. They are very easy to make and taste yum.


Ingredients
2.5 Cup Wheat Flour
1 Spoon Maida
1/2 Spoon Jeera
1 Spoon Jeera Powder
1/4 Spoon Coriander Powder
1 Spoon Red Chilli Powder
1/4 Spoon Turmeric Powder
Salt to taste
Oil

Method

• In a plate mix in maida, wheat flour, jeera, jeera powder, coriander powder, red chilli powder, turmeric powder and salt to taste.
• Add in 2 spoon of oil and mix well.
• Add water and knead the dough. Sprinkle 1 spoon of oil and knead again. Keep aside for at-least 30 minutes.
• Make lemon sized balls and roll the 3 fold parathas and cook them on the tawa, sprinkling oil.

Notes
The turmeric gives them awesome yellowish tinge and they look awesome. I also cooked them with very few drops of oil and that helped in retaining the yellow tinge
Maida helps getting crisp parathas.

How to Make Puff Pastry Pie

How to Make Puff Pastry Pie

Ingredients for Puff Pastry :
200 g pastry margarine
200 g plain flour
100 ml cold water
1/2 tsp salt
1tsp lemon juice

Method:
Preparing the puff pastry:
1. Put the flour in a mixing bowl. Mix water, salt and lemon juice together. Mix well and knead into a smooth ball. Rest for 20 minutes.

2. Roll the dough into rectangular shape. Place the pastry margarine in the centre of the dough, Wrap the dough till all the sides are covered.

3. Flour the work surface and roll out the pastry into about 30cm x 10cm rectangle. Fold it into three

4. Make a quarter-turn. Roll the block of pastry again into about 30cm x 10cm rectangle as before and fold it into three again.

5. Wrap the block in cling film and refrigerate it for at least 30 minutes.

6. Give the chilled pastry another two turns, rolling and folding as before. This makes a total of four turns, and the pastry is now ready.

Preparing the Filling:

100 g potatoes

50 g chicken meat

1tbsp curry powder

6 onions

a pinch of salt

2tbsp oil

Method:

1. Cut the potatoes into small cubes. Cut chicken meat into small cubes.

2. Heat up a wok with some oil. Fry all the ingredients together till cooked. Season with some salt. Cool it on a plate.

To make the pie:

1. Roll out the dough thinly about 1 mm thick, Cut the dough with a round cutter and place then into patty tins with paper cups. Put some filings into them and cover another pastry on top. Brush with some beaten eggs. Bake for about 15 minutes. 

The Press Bistro

The Press Bistro

"It’s easier to keep a customer than get a new one.”

-Allan Keller

1809 Capitol Ave., Sacramento, CA 95811, (916) 444-2566
http://www.thepressbistro.com/

[I don't like to write negative reviews and I actually waited a week and a half before I wrote this, giving myself time to cool down before I started tapping keys. So you can only imagine how I felt right after the experience....]

With restaurants closing left and right in Sacramento, I would think those whose doors are open for business would be striving to retain their current customer base and looking to welcome new guests...but apparently not so at The Press Bistro (not to be confused with the Press Club, a dive bar on P Street). Case in point---a friend of mine and I decided to get together recently for a much needed girls' night out...we wanted somewhere nice where we could grab a few appetizers and chat quietly over a few cocktails. Neither of us had been to The Press so we thought we'd check it out. Right off the bat, things didn't fare well at The Press. We walked up to the hostess stand where we stood uneasily. After a few minutes, the hostess finally greeted us with her eyes still down, writing in her book. In fact she never once looked at us or smiled. She did walk us to a table though. I wish at this point, we had turned around and had just left because the service didn't get any better...or any friendlier. Our waitress appeared almost perturbed with us from the get go (and I'm a pretty lax person to wait on)...for some reason it seemed like it was a giant inconvenience for her to wait on our table. There were a few major things especially that she did that really rubbed me the wrong way---1) once the expediters dropped off the food, she never checked back on us to see how it was or whether we wanted another drink, 2) she reached her arm right in front of my face to clear plates, 3) and she actually walked away while we were in the midst of explaining to her how we wanted the bill settled. It was such an uncomfortable experience, we couldn't wait to leave.

Horrendous service aside, the food there was actually okay. We got three appetizers- the roasted beets with goat cheese, the fried meatballs with garlic-yogurt sauce and the grilled calamari with cherry tomato panzanella. We both really enjoyed the meatballs and the calamari (which was truly served grilled and not breaded and fried like most places). The sangria we ordered was less of a hit...it was quite bitter and mine had no fruit in it, which I found odd. Had the establishment's environment been more hospitable we would have probably ordered a few other cocktails (they had a pretty interesting looking drink menu) and maybe a few other dishes but being unpleasant as it was we decided to leave instead and take ourselves down to the Shady Lady where we had a couple of rounds of drinks (try their mojito or their Blood & Sand---Mmmm! Both are delicious!) and some dessert.

Based on my recent evening at The Press, it seems that they obviously don't want or need new customers. Or at least they're allowing their wait staff to convey the message that they don't. Although the bistro is quite close to my home, I don't think it'll be a place that I'll be returning to patronize again or suggesting it to others. I prefer to give my dollars to a place that exudes a welcoming vibe.

Jet Charter Travel in Africa

Jet Charter Travel in Africa

Africa is on the move and a new confident class of oligarchs is emerging from the continent; confident and optimistic business leaders who are strutting the continent's capitals signing deals be they in banking, mining, manufacturing or telecommunications or the internet and holidaying across the vastness of the continent.  The continent now has its own billionaires and self made millionaires and it's no wonder that they are demanding luxury, not just in living but in travel.

Jet Charter travel has been common especially in Africa's tourist hotspots in Kenya, South Africa, Egypt, Morocco, Seychelles, Zanzibar, Maldives and Tunisia. While the overwhelming majority of clients are still wealthy Westerners, homegrown demand for high end luxury jet charter services is also driving the growth of the industry on the continent.

Several factors have led to the well heeled chosing jet charter services in place of scheduled commercial airline services. The first outstanding quality that you will notice when you decide to charter a jet is a noticeably high level of luxury. On your normal jet charter flight you can expect to be served gourmet food, receive the best customer service, have the most comfortable seat, and have the latest entertainment media available. On private jet charter flights, you will be guaranteed exclusivity. You probably will fly in a plane that seats 10-15 people, so you won’t be sharing space with a ton of other people.  While the in-flight service might vary depending on where you are flying, you can still expect excellent services.

VIP Private Jet

 Chartering a jet also comes with a reduced level of travel stress and anxiety. Charter travel pretty much eliminates all travel stresses because of the service and partial exclusivity that it offers. If you decide to use a jet charter, you won’t have to worry about waiting in long lines at the airport, mishandled luggage, or missed flights. You can show up right on time for your flight and your luggage comes with you on the plane.   

Jet Charter services in Africa also provide flights to exotic locales. There are relatively few airports in Africa serving mostly the major cities while regional airports are underdeveloped, so commercial airlines are allowed to only land where there’s an airport or  relatively well maintained landing strips. However, charter jets are much smaller and much more maneuverable; they are able to land in many more locations, some of which are very remote and quite enchanting.

Jet Charters take you to exotic locales!!

Most people assume charter travel is expensive and for the wealthy, but the truth is that it can be very affordable. There are many promotional offers that charter travel companies give to customers. Often, companies will offer group discounts and special travel packages.  The internet has made shopping easy and many private jet charter companies provide highly personalized services to clients and prospective clients. You can also check out various websites like JetCharters.com for special deals and promotions and flight experience straight out of aviation's golden age.

Email Us at FlightAfricablog@gmail.com

Gadgets: Robot Tea Infuser

Gadgets: Robot Tea Infuser

How cute is this? A wee little droid peeking out from your chamomile....
Available at ModCloth

Events: Oto's Japanese Marketplace Fall Festival, Oct. 8th-9th

Events: Oto's Japanese Marketplace Fall Festival, Oct. 8th-9th

http://www.otosmarketplace.com/

Vegetable Puff

Vegetable Puff

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Vegetable puff is quite similar to curry puff. The difference is the fillings are made from vegetables and serve with chili sauce.

Ingredients for the fillings:
1 small turnip
1 carrot
1 tbsp soy bean paste
2 cloves garlic

Ingredients for the pastry:
2 cups flour
1 cup hot water
2 tbsp butter
1 tsp salt

Method:
1. Wash and shred the turnip and carrot thinly. Scald the bean sprout.

2.Preparing the fillings:
a) Pound garlic and soy bean paste together. Heat oil in a wok and fry until it is fragrant. Then add the turnip, carrot and cook until it is soft. Stir until they are blended and season with soy sauce, salt and sugar. Set aside and leave to cool.

3. Preparing the pastry:
a) Put flour in a bowl with salt.
b) Rub in butter until it looks like bread crumbs. Add in hot water and knead until smooth and soft. Leave aside to rest about half an hour. 

4. Making the vegetable puff:
a) Roll out the pastry and make into small balls. Roll out the pastry thinly and place it on a mould. Put some fillings  and wrap the fillings using the mould. If you do not have the mould, just roll out the pastry thinly and cut into round shapes. Place some fillings and close the pastry.

b) Heat up a wok and fry the puff till golden brown.
c) Serve on a plate.

French Fries

French Fries

मराठीमध्ये वाचण्यासाठी इथे क्लिक करा

Ajoy likes to eat french fries once in a while. We get those frozen ones and fry them as and when needed all the time. But i had been thinking of making them at home given that they are so simple. Always read about freezing them and keeping them cool before actually frying adding to the preparation time which off course i never had, given a sudden demand of french fries :) So last Saturday i decided to try them without refrigeration and all and worked out fine. So here is the quickest french fries recipe.


Ingredients
2 Potatoes
Salt to taste
Oil

Method

• Peel of the potatoes and cut them in small rectangular pieces.
• Keep them under running water and wash them thoroughly till the water is clear.
• Keep them in cold water for 5-10 minutes.
• Take it out of water and spread them on kitchen towel so that they are dry.
• Heat oil and fry them till light golden in color. Spread on kitchen towel
• Just before eating, fry the fries again till golden brown in color.
• Spread on kitchen towel, sprinkle salt and serve.

Notes
If you are making them for party, you could fry the fries for the first time and then store them in refrigerator. Fry them second time just before serving.
Two times frying is necessary as it helps in taking out moisture, cooking the potato and then making it crisp.